Dokken is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1976 as Airbourne, the group originally consisted of eponymous guitarist Don Dokken, lead vocalist Paul Goldwin, bassist Juan Croucier and drummer Bobby Blotzer.
By the time they recorded their debut album Breaking the Chains, the band's lineup featured of Don Dokken as lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist, lead guitarist George Lynch, bassist Juan Croucier and drummer Mick Brown.
Except eponymous vocalist, the current lineup of Dokken includes the guitarist Jon Levin (since 2003), bassist Chris McCarvill (since 2015) and drummer Bill "BJ" Zampa (since 2019).
History 1978–1983 Don Dokken formed his eponymous band Dokken in October 1978, after two years fronting a group called "Airbourne". The outfit's first recording was the single "Hard Rock Woman", on which Robin Trower band members Rustee Allen (bass guitar) and Bill Lordan (drums) performed, as Dokken was yet to hire an official band. By the time the release was printed, bassist Steven R. Barry and drummer Greg Pecka had been brought in, so they were credited on the sleeve as band members. For the band's first tour in Germany the same year, Barry was replaced by Juan Croucier. The tour spawned recordings for the EP Back in the Streets, recording in October 1979 and was released in 1989.
A second German tour followed in October 1980, which featured a lineup of Dokken with lead guitarist Greg Leon, bassist Gary Link and drummer Gary Holland.
In April 1981, Croucier and Blotzer returned to Dokken. In July new guitarist George Lynch and drummer "Wild" Mick Brown of band "Xciter" was joined. After signing with Carrere Records, the band recorded its debut album Breakin' the Chains until September, which was initially credited to Don Dokken as a solo release. Bass on the album was performed by Accept's Peter Baltes, as Croucier reportedly "missed the deadline to get to Germany" for the sessions.
After its release, the band returned to the US and, according to Don Dokken, "For a year and a half, nothing happened" – Croucier joined Ratt, while Lynch and Brown returned to "Xciter".
In the summer of 1983, Breaking the Chains was re-recorded with Croucier and released on 18 September by Elektra/Asylum Records. A few month before its release, Croucier left to commit full-time to Ratt.
1983–2002 Croucier was replaced after the release of Breaking the Chains by Jeff Pilson. This lineup remained constant throughout the rest of the 1980s, releasing the band's most successful albums in Tooth and Nail, Under Lock and Key, Back for the Attack and Beast from the East.
In March 1989, however, the group broke up due to ongoing tensions between Dokken and Lynch. Dokken has claimed that Lynch's excessive drug use was the reason for the split, while the guitarist has blamed disagreements over financial arrangements for the breakup, claiming that the frontman "decided that he wanted it all, he didn't wanna share it with us".
In late 1994, Lynch was convinced to reunite with Dokken to complete a reformation of the band's previous lineup, adding lead guitar overdubs to a new album released the next year, Dysfunctional. However, after one more album, Shadowlife, Lynch left again in late 1997. He was replaced by former Europe guitarist John Norum, who joined partway through an American tour before the end of the year. By the next summer, former Winger and Alice Cooper guitarist Reb Beach had taken over the position. Beach recorded one studio album, Erase the Slate, before Norum returned in July 2001. The group started recording a new album, but in October 2001 it was announced that Pilson had been replaced for the sessions by bassist Barry Sparks, although this was initially not a full-time replacement. The following month, however, Don Dokken confirmed that Pilson had officially left to focus on his various other projects.
2002–2016
After the release of Long Way Home, John Norum left again in June 2002. Although his departure was initially credited to an injury, the guitarist later explained that it was due to tensions with Don Dokken, claiming that "he became this awful person that I didn't want to have anything to do with." Following Norum's second departure, the band was temporarily joined by Italian guitarist Alex De Rosso. The 2002 tour also saw drummer Mick Brown replaced for one show by Adam Hamilton of L.A. Guns due to a recurring shoulder injury. By late 2003, Dokken had a new full-time lead guitarist in Jon Levin, formerly of Warlock, who debuted on Hell to Pay in 2004.
Following the release and promotion of Lightning Strikes Again, Sparks temporarily left to tour with UFO in the summer of 2009, with former Great White bassist Sean McNabb taking his place. Early the next year, Sparks had to step back from his duties with both bands in order to take care of a family member. McNabb subsequently remained, debuting on the 2010 collection of re-recordings Greatest Hits. He also performed on 2012's Broken Bones, before being replaced in November 2014 by former Yngwie Malmsteen vocalist Mark Boals due to his inability to commit full-time to Dokken. Within a year, however, Boals had been replaced by Chris McCarvill.
Since 2016 In June 2016, following months of rumours, it was announced that the "classic" Dokken lineup including guitarist George Lynch, bassist Jeff Pilson and drummer Mick Brown (still a regular member) were set to reunite for a short run of shows in Japan that October. Despite receiving offers to add more shows in various countries around the world, Don Dokken assured fans that a reunion would "never happen again" after the Japanese tour. Footage from one of the shows was later released as Return from the East Live (2016) in April 2018.
On May 7, 2019, Brown announced that he was "taking a break" from performing with Dokken. Within a couple of months of the announcement, Don Dokken added that Brown was permanently retiring, with his temporary replacement Bill "BJ" Zampa of House of Lords taking his place in the group. In 2020 the band released The Lost Songs: 1978–1981, on which Levin and Zampa performed some overdubs on old tracks.
Members Current ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsDon Dokkenall releasesGeorge LynchJon Levin2003–presentChris McCarvill2015–presentHeaven Comes Down (2023)Bill "BJ" Zampa2019–present
Former ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsJuan CroucierBobby BlotzerdrumsBreakin' the Chains (1981) Paul Goldwin1976lead vocalsrowspan="2" Jeff Tappen1977bass guitarGreg Pecka1978–1980drumsSteven R. Barry1978–1979rowspan="4" Gary Link1980–1981bass guitarGary HollanddrumsGreg Leon1980lead guitarMick "Wild" Brownall releases from Breakin' the Chains (1981) to Return to the East Live (2016)Warren DeMartini1982guitarBreakin' the Chains (1983) Jeff Pilsonall releases from Tooth and Nail (1984) to Live from the Sun (2000) & subsequent live albumsJohn NorumLong Way Home (2002)Reb Beach1998–2001Barry Sparks2001–2009Alex De Rosso2002–2003Sean McNabb2009–2014Mark Boals
Touring ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsDetailsMikkee D2001bass guitarMikkee stood in for Jeff Pilson, who was working on solo material, at the Sweden Rock Festival in 2001.Adam Hamilton2002drumsHamilton substituted for Mick Brown for one show in the summer of 2002 due to a recurring shoulder injury.Greg Smith2003Smith filled in for Barry Sparks, who was busy fulfilling other tour commitments, on several occasions.Frankie Banali 2004 drums K.J. Hunter 2006 One-off show in 2006 at the House of Blues. Vik Foxx 2007Jeff Martin2008Martin and Marks each filled in for Mick Brown during Dokken's touring in the summer of 2008.Bobby MarksdrumsJimmy DeGrasso2012DeGrasso temporarily took over from Mick Brown during the summer of 2012, as he was touring with Ted Nugent.Jack Russell2017lead vocalsRussell made a guest appearance on "Alone Again" at Dokken's M3 Rock Festival performance in April 2017.Ira Blacklead guitarBlack temporarily substituted for regular guitarist Jon Levin during a tour in November and December 2017.
Session ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsBill Lordan1978drumsRustee Allenbass guitarPeter Baltes1981Breakin' the Chains (1981)
Timeline
Lineups PeriodMembersReleases1976 Paul Goldwin — lead vocals Don Dokken – guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals Bobby Blotzer – drumsrowspan="4" 1976 – 1977Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals Bobby Blotzer – drums1977Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Jeff Tappen – bass guitar Bobby Blotzer – drums1977 – September 1978Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals Bobby Blotzer – drumsOctober 1978 Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Rustee Allen – bass guitar Bill Lordan – drums"Hard Rock Woman" (1978)October 1978 – June 1979Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Steven R. Barry – bass guitar, backing vocals Greg Pecka – drumsJuly 1979 – September 1980Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals Greg Pecka – drumsThe Lost Songs: 1978–1981 (2020) Back in the Streets (1989)October – December 1980Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar Greg Leon – lead guitar Gary Link – bass guitar Gary Holland – drumsrowspan="2" January – March 1981Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Gary Link – bass guitar Gary Holland – drumsApril – June 1981Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar Bobby Blotzer – drumsBreakin' the Chains (1981) July – September 1981Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar George Lynch – lead guitar Peter Baltes – bass guitar Mick Brown – drums, backing vocalsBreakin' the Chains (1981) November 1981 – May 1982 Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar; guitar George Lynch – lead guitar; guitar, backing vocals Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals; co-lead vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocalsBreakin' the Chains (1981) Complete Beat Club 1982 (2018)Band inactive May – October 1982October – December 1982Don Dokken – lead vocals Warren DeMartini – guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drumsBreaking the Chains (1983) January – October 1983Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar George Lynch – lead guitar Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocalsBreaking the Chains (1983) October 1983 – March 1989Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar George Lynch – guitar Jeff Pilson – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocals Tooth and Nail (1984) Under Lock and Key (1985) Back for the Attack (1987) Beast from the East (1988) From Conception: Live 1981 (2007)Band inactive March 1989 – March 1990March – April 1990 Don Dokken – lead vocals, occasional guitars Billy White – guitar John Norum – guitar, backing vocals Peter Baltes – bass guitar, backing vocals Hempo Hilden – drumsApril 1990 – December 1991Don Dokken – lead vocals, occasional guitars Billy White – guitar John Norum – guitar, backing vocals Peter Baltes – bass guitar, backing vocals Mikkey Dee – drums Up from the Ashes (1990)Band inactive December 1991 – mid 1993Mid 1993 – November 1994Don Dokken – lead vocals, guitar Jeff Pilson – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocalsDecember 1994 – August 1997Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar George Lynch – guitar Jeff Pilson – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocals Dysfunctional (1995) One Live Night (1996) Shadowlife (1997) Japan Live '95 (2003)September 1997 – August 1998Don Dokken – lead vocals John Norum – guitar, backing vocals Jeff Pilson – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocalsAugust 1998 – June 2001Don Dokken – lead vocals, rhythm guitar Reb Beach – lead guitar, backing vocals; rhythm guitar Jeff Pilson – bass guitar, backing vocals Mick Brown – drums, backing vocalsErase the Slate (1999)